Monday, August 9, 2010

My Kind Of Denim Shirt

Despite owning a few denim shirts (not that many, but a decent amount), a part of me still associates them with casual Friday in my hometown's public school system. See, on Friday teachers were allowed to "dress down" in a department of education certified/branded denim shirt. As you can imagine they were ugly as sin. It doesn't take a style blog or a GQ subscription to know that most denim shirts look like shit and for the longest time that's pretty much all I thought. Over the years I eventually came around to various classic takes on this cotton style of shirting and you may have as well - this is, of course, discounting those of you who were delivered in the wilderness by a doctor (and part-time lumberjack) wearing Red Wings and instantly draped in selvedge chambray courtesy of OshKosh B'Gosh. So yeah, Paul Stewart/Phineas Cole has just put up their first F/W 2010 arrivals and I'll be damned if they don't have the best denim shirt I've seen in a long time, possibly ever. They did up their signature Nigel shirt in denim the only way they know how - Italian cotton, cutaway collar, French cuff, and single needle tailoring. I could probably do without the French cuffs and a price tag that reads a little too rich for my blood, but this could also be the only denim shirt you ever buy so there's that to consider. Combinations like this fire on all cylinders for me personally, but I get how it's an acquired taste. Some guys wouldn't be caught dead in a denim shirt, let one of the dress shirt variety (PC claims this can work for sport too - French cuffs claim otherwise), so feel free to disregard if you're can't shake the faculty lounge masses working for the weekend.

16 comments:

No, Thanks - 2 points for clever use of the comments section. 1 point deduction for laughing that hard at your own joke.

Anon @2:49- Not at all. It's more or less like an garment dyed oxford cloth button down (you know, like the indigo number Inventory did with Gitman Vintage). I think this is even superior thanks to the European detailing.

The Nigel collar is the perfect dress shirt collar. This particular shirt, though made of denim, doesn't have the texture of a pair of jeans. The way I see it, it's just a dark blue/grey shirt and I'd probably pair it with a light colored jacket.

"See, on Friday teachers were allowed to "dress down" in a department of education certified/branded denim shirt. "

WTH -- Were you raised in a prison colony?

The only think that could make that shirt worse would be contrasting stitching. If that is the best denim shirt you have ever seen, then please continue to follow your instinct against wearing denim shirts at all.

hrm. i'd be curious to see a fit pic, to see how that collar works. denim shirts are inherently casual, so i'm not sure how much mileage i'd get out of that collar being buttoned all the way up + tie. still love Phineas Cole though. even though they're generally too rich for my blood.